2024-04-18: A Tragedy Ended: Difference between revisions
(Created page with "*'''Log: A Tragedy Ended''' *'''Cast:''' Character :: Seraph Lanval, Character :: Ida Everstead-Rey, Character :: Anne Aomori, Character :: Damian Tamaoka *'''Where:''' Emyrs Mire *'''Date:''' April 18, 2024 *'''Summary''': ''Lanval and Ida return to Emyrs Mire. They bring with them two Nedians interested in understanding Malevolence... and go through an old story.'' ---- DG: A party led by Seraph Lanval is now entering Emrys Mire - Quiescent. DG: P...") |
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Latest revision as of 16:49, 19 April 2024
- Log: A Tragedy Ended
- Cast: Seraph Lanval, Ida Everstead-Rey, Anne Aomori, Damian Tamaoka
- Where: Emyrs Mire
- Date: April 18, 2024
- Summary: Lanval and Ida return to Emyrs Mire. They bring with them two Nedians interested in understanding Malevolence... and go through an old story.
DG: A party led by Seraph Lanval is now entering Emrys Mire - Quiescent. DG: Party formation is now over. An Entry Challenge will now be drawn and displayed to the party.
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
=========================<* CHALLENGE - Bogged Down *>==========================
| Type: Entry | Dungeon Ability: Brute | Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
Once, the Emrys Mire was a terrible place, rife with Malevolence.
Unfortunately, this is still largely true: it's simply that, with the death
of the Fell Dragon that had been sealed away here, its overall level of
menace has been greatly reduced -- reduced, but not eliminated.
It is still, unfortunately, a horrible bog.
The path you have chosen to take you into the mire is clear and easy walking
for a while, until it isn't: the path vanishes into the muck and presents no
other apparent options forward that will keep your shoes dry.
Do you have what it takes to press on into the mire?
BGM: Louie Zong - WIZARD DISCO
https://louiezong.bandcamp.com/album/wizard-disco
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tThOlpk0NlI (flashing lights)
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Exhaust:_Exhaustion_Up_On_Failure! and Weaken:_Brute_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.
For years, a Water Seraph afflicted by Malevolence could only be sealed away by her dear mortal friend - an act of heroism in their time. As the years went on and the inevitable generation of immense amounts of Malevolence escaped the weakening seal, the wizard who made the seal to begin with began to be viewed as a villain. The truth, eventually, came to light once the Fell Dragon was laid to rest.
The Malevolence pressure has lessened, but much of it remains residually... and with the strange phenomena of Malevolence being gradually introduced to Nede among those small handful Resonant enough to sense it, the Oracle of Schturdark and one of the Seers of Flame help one of the more prominent researchers of Nede to come see and understand it for herself while cursory work is to be gauged about how much more effort it might take to lessen the Malevolence presence further.
"Mmm. Ground rule, however ya feel... feel it. 'n be true ta yershelf here." Seraph Lanval, a jovial soul who nonetheless takes his spheres of knowledge and expertise with appreciable gravity even with his nature, explains as such as they come to where the swamp's murk offers no dry passage. To go through here is to have to wade on through. (Any risks to the corporeal about more mundane risks involved is best explained from the corporeal.)
"There wash a Seraph - one like me, in fact, a Water Seraph - who became afflicted with Malevolence," the general primer having been given in advance, "'n all that could be done then wash ta keep 'em shealed away. The power ta purify Malevolence ain't common... 'n once a Seraph takes in enough Malevolence, it'sh only a matter of time before they become a Fell Dragon."
"After that... they're beyond the reach of our ability ta purify." There's the matter of Shepherd Sorey and what he's doing to help Maotelus, but that's such an extreme case that's going to take a very long time to see as to whether it works - they might be the exception that proves the rule, and Lanval hasn't spoken out loud about that to anyone. (He knows that's someone else's story to tell the finer details of.)
"Mmm. Anyway... remember what I shaid," he says, as he starts to wade. The residual conflicted, contradictory feelings of that fallen Water Seraph remain - helpless, drowning, frustrated, abandoned, trying to latch onto anyone. In the physical sense, it's like it's trying to pull anyone else down with them even though it won't help them climb any higher.
DG: Seraph Lanval has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Bogged Down.
<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.
Emrys Mire has changed for the better since Ida was here last. Sure, it's still a swampy, dismal little corner of the world, but swamps are perfectly valid habitats, home to rich biodiversity. The Malevolence--the actual problem, which turned the bog into something foul and fetid--is returning to stable levels. That's what Ida's here to check up on, personally. Introducing two Nedian colleagues to a unique ecosystem is a definite bonus.
"There's definitely pockets of it remaining," Ida says, as she approaches the edge of the bog. She's dressed for it, at least--her clothes are of Lunarian make, an undyed cotton tunic, sturdy homespun pants, gloves. Her steps are slow and even, and when she finds the ground starting to give way, she stops, and takes a deep breath.
Ida's backpack rustles. Catastrophe Sal pokes her head out, and peers at the morass ahead. "Free," she says. She does not sound impressed.
"It used to be much worse," Ida says. "But... unless anyone has any ideas, we're going to have to slog through this."
<Pose Tracker> Anne Aomori has posed.
Anne Aomori is quite interested in this phenomenon--but not for the reasons one might expect, depending on how well they knew her. It's a clear danger to Energy Nede, or could be, and that's one thing. ...But she sees nothing to 'use' in it either, no power that Team Rocket would be interested in.
She wants to learn of it so she can learn how to counteract it.
Besides, she does want to see more of Lunar and Filgaia. This is her first time off-world.
She's been observant the whole time, despite her apparent lack of combat ability. She does have Pokemon with her, but she's dressed in ordinary-seeming Nedian clothes, the pokeballs at her belt for the moment.
And when they reach the area... Anne looks up, considering the environment before her. She feels the taint of this place, but it washes around her, rather than infiltrating her being. She is not a woman who is afraid to be herself.
"I see," she says. "An emotional plague, that preys on uncertainty..." Her mind trips to Damian, but she doesn't look at him for the moment. "We'll have to hold to our reasons for being here," she says, nodding once. "Don't be afraid to be afraid, I suppose."
Anne considers wading through. Ida seems to indicate that they might have ideas. And indeed...
"Laqui," she directs, and pulls a Pokeball. The large, mammalian Pokemon emerges, and immediately he hisses at the environment, flames bursting into being at his back. "I know," Anne says. "But use your Lava Plume to build us a bridge. That'll make it a little better."
The Typhlosion roars--and lava bubbles up from the bog!
DG: Anne Aomori has used her Tool Lava Plume toward her party's challenge, Bogged Down. Strengthen! Party Brute boosted!
<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.
This wasn't Damian's first trip off of Nede, but it was his first trip to Lunar, and to investigate another new type of spiritual phenomenon he hasn't encountered before... Anne might have explained her ability to see Seraphim as a family technique, but Damian's Resonance, on the other hand, seemed to be wholly natural... or possibly a side effect of his Spiritsight. There's just no way to know, without having access to Seraphim to perceive until very recently.
He was nervous, about going to investigate something like this, but... he was curious to see more of Lunar, he wanted to maybe understand his abilities better, and... well, he liked spending time with Anne. And he wanted to be there to look after her too... even though she was doubtlessly much better equipped to protect herself.
He's dressed in his regular outfit of a hoodie, shorts, and sneakers. Purri, as ever, is riding on his shoulder, and he has his backpack and pokeballs on his belt.
Damian stands, silent, just looking at the muck--or no, he's looking beyond that, his eyes wide. There's that residual emotional pull. Helplessness, frustration, ebandonment, needing to latch onto others, to depend on them... He shivers, a hand going to his chest as he takes a deep breath and closes his eyes.
"It's s-still so much," he whispers... "Wh-what happened to that Seraph, to m-make him that way...?"
He looks up to Anne and nods as she gives advice. "R-right..." Purri jumps down into his arms and he hugs her close as he starts to move forward. "I can do this," he says softly to himself.
DG: Damian Tamaoka has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Bogged Down. DG: Ida Everstead-Rey has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Bogged Down.
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
=========================<* CHALLENGE - Bogged Down *>==========================
| Type: Entry | Dungeon Ability: Brute | Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
Once, the Emrys Mire was a terrible place, rife with Malevolence.
Unfortunately, this is still largely true: it's simply that, with the death
of the Fell Dragon that had been sealed away here, its overall level of
menace has been greatly reduced -- reduced, but not eliminated.
It is still, unfortunately, a horrible bog.
The path you have chosen to take you into the mire is clear and easy walking
for a while, until it isn't: the path vanishes into the muck and presents no
other apparent options forward that will keep your shoes dry.
Do you have what it takes to press on into the mire?
BGM: Louie Zong - WIZARD DISCO
https://louiezong.bandcamp.com/album/wizard-disco
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tThOlpk0NlI (flashing lights)
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Exhaust:_Exhaustion_Up_On_Failure!, Strengthen:_Brute_Up!, and |
| Weaken:_Brute_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>========================== =================< Results - Emrys Mire - Quiescent - Round 1 >================= ==========================< CHALLENGE - Bogged Down >=========================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Seraph Lanval 0 --(5)--> 5 Good Force Bsc Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Anne Aomori 0 --(5)--> 5 Good Lava Plume Min Brute Effects: Strengthen -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Damian Tamaoka 0 --(21)--> 21 Bad Force Bsc Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ida Everstead-Rey 0 --(5)--> 5 Good Force Bsc Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Leader: Seraph Lanval 0 --(20)--> 20 Pass Conditions: Exhaust(1) and Weaken(2) Effects: Strengthen(1) = Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
DG: The party led by Seraph Lanval has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.
Ida and Lanval both seem ready to take things directly, but as it so happens, Anne proves resourceful in the face of a novel situation - through the help of her long-time friend, Laqui, whom dutifully applies a Lava Plume in order to summon liquefied rock that immediately cools into a lengthy, stable earthen foothold to transpire.
The murk seems to splash and grasp at the edges of it by some unseen force (the force is Malevolence, which they all can see, but there is a contractual obligation to refer to it as 'some unseen force' for the majority who cannot see it).
"That'd do it!" Lanval calls out, and signals forward with the sweep of an arm - but he doesn't charge ahead at the front. Instead, he hangs back not too far from Damian, despite his stated discomfort with Lanval's presence a while ago.
"Malevolence ish a dangeroush, shcary thing to Seraphim," Lanval sums it up to Damian. He keeps a genuine, patient smile through it all with one open eye. "Washn't that long ago I kept myshelf inshide a Vessel with a buncha my good friendsh when we went through here." That was years ago... that's a blink of an eye for a Seraph, at least the ones who have the privilege to end up living long lives.
Ida is able to invoke the flames of the Power that Sustains the World in the instance any bubbling-up Malevolence clouds seem a bit too suspect, but the Lava Plume-generated bridge holds for as long as it needs to. For whatever reasons Anne needs to hold to herself...
Well, there's only one way forward to see those reasons fulfilled.
DG: Anne Aomori has drawn a new Challenge.
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
========================<* CHALLENGE - Friend or No? *>=========================
| Type: Exploration | Dungeon Ability: Wits | Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
With the diminishing of Malevolence, normal animals can live in the Mire
once again. One of them comes over to you now, looking at you with
entreating eyes. It seems to want something from you.
Probably, it wants some food. Or a shiny object.
Perhaps it knows something about the path forward that might help you out.
Or maybe it's running some sort of... animal... scam on unwary travelers.
But surely, a bribe won't go unrewarded, assuming you have anything it might
like.
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Reckless:_Wits_Down!_Brute_Up!, Strengthen:_Brute_Up!, |
| Tire:_Exhaustion_Up!, and Weaken:_Brute_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
<Pose Tracker> Anne Aomori has posed.
Malevolence is dangerous to Seraphim. They become dragons...
But as Damian encourages himself, Anne says, "You can."
Laqui's work is done. When they finish, Anne recalls him, rather than have him hanging out in this muck. He doesn't like muck that much.
She steps, her shoes impacting the warm ground, as she looks to Lanval again. "But it's different, now? Is it because the place is better... or because you're stronger?"
Forward is, as ever, the only way.
But as they walk through the marsh, it is briefly uneventful--until, after a little while, a crow comes to land, and looks with interest at the group. It skitters closer. Curious.
"Hmmm," Anne says. "...Do we have anything to give this fellow? It appears to be the kind of curious animal that wants to trade..."
She's a Pokemon behaviorist. Does that help with Lunarian animals?
DG: Anne Aomori has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Friend or No?.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.
"Li'l of column A... shome of column B... nothin' from C. Maybe from D. Shome from E," Lanval waves a hand, jovially, waving it and failing to provide context for what columns C, D, or E are. He brings that hand to scratch at his beard hairs contemplatively. "A lot went down between then 'n now..."
It's quiet and uneventful and it's good, so far. It's a good sign for the spiritual health of this place that it might be on the mend. Lanval ambles along in that weird way he treats the concept of walking, where he watches as a crow appears.
"Mmmm. Luckily... that ain't a Hellion." One eye opens half-way. They could be pretending not to be, but that's not something he's seen ordinary animals pull off to recollection.
While someone else may yet deal with the concept of giving gifts or treats to curious wild critters, Lanval puts on a very strange, off-kilter pair of beer lens novelty glasses, an attachment that will one day ruin a serious cutscene but for now...
It might reflect something against Lanval's lenses of interest to the crow, or someone else among the gathered.
DG: Seraph Lanval has used his Tool Amber Tinted Lens toward his party's challenge, Friend or No?. Fanfare!
<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.
Ida's eyes widen as lava erupts from the mucky earth. "Butterfree," says Sal, and there's a bit of a trill in it--the Pokemon equivalent of a whistle. She's impressed. So is Ida; she's seen Lahqi around the lab a lot, but she's never seen him do this.
"Thank you, Anne," she says. "And you, Lahqi." Once the bridge has cooled, she sets out in the lead, keeping an eye on the clouds. None of them drift too close, but Ida is ready.
"Deep breaths," Ida says, to Damian. The Malevolence here isn't bad, compared to some of the hellholes she's been (and lived in, for months), but she remembers how overwhelming it got sometimes when she was first building up a tolerance.
And soon enough, there's another sign the Mire is in the mend: a perfectly ordinary animal. "That's a crow," Ida says. "They're quite common on both Filgaia and Lunar--and they're smart birds." Which might not mean much when comparing one to, say, a Pokemon, but crows haven't been aggressively engineered. And Anne's right--this one seems to want to trade.
Ida reaches into a pouch at her belt, and pulls out something small and shiny: a metal nut, machined on a Filgaian press. She sets it down on the ground, and backs away to let the crow inspect it.
DG: Ida Everstead-Rey has used her Tool ARMs Meister's Field Kit toward her party's challenge, Friend or No?. Enlighten! Party Wits boosted!
<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.
Damian is doing better with Lanval's presence, first knowing what he is, but also having met him before. He's not some new, unexplained kind of ghost anymore. Or a ghost at all, really. That helps a lot.
And Lanval might be the last of his worries at the moment, given all of the spiritual miasma still present.
Anne offers encouragement, which earns her a brief, but strained smile. He still struggles as he presses forward, despite that. There's a path, but even so... his knees are shaky, and Purri is doing overtime nuzzling up at his face to keep him calm. But it's still hard.
He looks up to Ida as she advises deep breaths and nods. "I'm t-trying..." He is doing that, but... maybe this particular flavor of leftover Malevolence is just really resonating with him, or myabe his sensitivity is causing issues.
But the sppearance of a new type of animal is enough to distract him, momentarily, and he quickly whips out his smartphone to take a picture. But Anne points out he might want a trade, and Damian thinks about it... and then reaches into his medicine pouch in his backpack and pulls out a handful of berries, offering them in an open hand. "M-maybe this will do?"
DG: Damian Tamaoka has used his Tool Medicine Pocket toward his party's challenge, Friend or No?. Cleanse! All negative effects will be cleared at the end of the round! Liability! Failure will result in extra Exhaustion!
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
========================<* CHALLENGE - Friend or No? *>=========================
| Type: Exploration | Dungeon Ability: Wits | Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
With the diminishing of Malevolence, normal animals can live in the Mire
once again. One of them comes over to you now, looking at you with
entreating eyes. It seems to want something from you.
Probably, it wants some food. Or a shiny object.
Perhaps it knows something about the path forward that might help you out.
Or maybe it's running some sort of... animal... scam on unwary travelers.
But surely, a bribe won't go unrewarded, assuming you have anything it might
like.
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Cleanse:_All_Effects_Removed!, Enlighten:_Wits_Up!, |
| Reckless:_Wits_Down!_Brute_Up!, Tire:_Exhaustion_Up!, and |
| Weaken:_Brute_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
=================< Results - Emrys Mire - Quiescent - Round 2 >=================
=========================< CHALLENGE - Friend or No? >==========================
Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval 5 --(5)--> 10 Best
Amber Tinted Lens Maj Wits Effects: Fanfare
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anne Aomori 5 --(5)--> 10 Good
Investigate Bsc Wits Effects: BASIC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Damian Tamaoka 21 --(5)--> 26 Best
Medicine Pocket Min Wits Effects: Cleanse and
Liability
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ida Everstead-Rey 5 --(5)--> 10 Best
ARMs Meister's Field Kit Min Wits Effects: Enlighten
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Leader: Seraph Lanval 20 --(20)--> 40 Pass
Conditions: Reckless(2), Tire(2), and Weaken(1)
Effects: Cleanse and Enlighten(1)
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
DG: The party led by Seraph Lanval has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Anne Aomori has posed.
"Hmmmm," Anne reflects on Lanval's answer. "Interesting." She's fine with his drunken antics. She likes people who know how to have a good time.
"Are Hellions usually animals?" Anne wonders of Lanval, then. Laqui meanwhile accepts Butterfree's praise with a proud toss of his head.
"You're welcome," Anne says.
A 'crow'...
Lanval's glasses are strange. The crow tilts its head at their shine. It regards the berries thoughtfully, and nibbles at them, eating one. But the nut! Ah, that beautiful shiny object. The crow takes it and flies away!
...There are a few magical feathers left--anyone can sense their power. What do they do? Well, perhaps that's a mystery.
"What an interesting animal," Anne remarks. A pause. "You're doing very well, Mia. Just breathe, like she says."
DG: Damian Tamaoka has drawn a new Challenge.
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
========================<* CHALLENGE - Don't Give Up *>=========================
| Type: Exploration | Dungeon Ability: Combat | Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
Picking your way across the swamp is never easy even under ideal
circumstances and these aren't it. You're forced to go from dry patch to dry
patch, leaping or stepping your way as you're able, ever deeper into the
mire.
Something bubbles from underneath the waters of the swamp. Oh, what now--
Skeletons. They're what's now. Armed with rusted weaponry and animated by
Malevolence, they advance!
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Enlighten:_Wits_Up!, Reckless:_Wits_Down!_Brute_Up!, and |
| Wound:_Combat_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.
Damian does smile a little, as the crow nibbles at the offered berries. But it finally accepts an offer of a nut and flies off, leaving behind feathers... Damian can tell there's magic in them, and he stoops down to pick a couple up, putting them into a small clear bag that he pulls out from his pocket. "I know s-someone who w-will like these..."
He's thinking of Nami, who collected a bunch of Filgaian samples on her first trip off of Nede. Some Lunar ones will probably be interesting, too.
He smiles, briefly, up to Anne, as she compliments him. "Th-thanks..." He doesn't think to explain the nickname to Lanval or Ida.
But that cheer is short-lived as they press on, and Damian is still struggling with picking his way through teh swampy murk. Until suddenly he stops, a hand going to his head. "W-w-wait!" he blurts out. "Wh-what... wh-what is th-that..." He closed his eyes to block out the extra sensations, but when he opens them again, his pale, silver eyes are definitely glimmering softly.
Ida might have caught a very brief little glance of this once before, when Damian was communing with the fossil of a Metal Beast on his first Dig with her, but there's no mistaking it now. He scans the ara around them and suddenly points.
"Th-th-there! W-watch out!"
With uncanny timing, several skeletons rise up from the depths, wielding very rusted longswords and shields that should be falling apart but somehow aren't, probably due to the malevolence's effects.
Without prompting Purri jumps off of Damian's shoulder and leaps at the skeletons. Black energy flows down her claws as she uses Hone Claws to make them extra lethal.
Dark types have an advantage against Ghost types, right?
DG: Damian Tamaoka has used his Tool Pokeball Belt toward his party's challenge, Don't Give Up. Embolden! Party Combat boosted!
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.
Lanval waves a hand cheerily at the crow's departure. Things are all right here, for now.
"Hellions can come from animalsh, yeah. Mosht of the time, they jusht become a whole lot more violent. When the Malevolence getsh real bad... jusht about anything can end up takin' a life of itsh own," Lanval explains while they stagger along.
"Mia, huh?" He asks. Not judgmentally, nor incredulously. "She ish right, though, yer holdin' up okay. Now..."
"Malevolence can get inshide mortalsh too - or 'people,' mortal ish more a word we ushe - and if they take in too much... not everyone will, but they can become a Hellion. Mosht can't control themshelvesh at all, but shome... shome hold onto enough of who they are. Even fewer, are the onesh that can hide their Malevolence 'n appear like anyone elshe. When they do that, we can't tell there'sh any Malevolence there until it getsh back out."
Lanval explains as he continues along. "...Malevolence can take hold of the dead, too--"
'Th-th-there! W-watch out!'
Lanval steadies up and pulls out a shining bottle of sanctified water, splashing it at an arc before the surfacing skeletons to set a sanctified line that can prevent them from crossing, for a bit.
"Yep. Thoshe are Hellions!" He says, as Purri moves to defend her dearest friend, and from there, Lanval gives a nod over to Ida - she's up!
DG: Seraph Lanval has used his Tool Holy Bottle toward his party's challenge, Don't Give Up. Resilient! Party shielded from some exhaustion next round! You say, "+pot"
<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.
Anne's question prompts Ida to glance back over her shoulder. Sal peers back at her from the safety of her backpack. "Ree?" says the Butterfree, cocking her head to the side. After a moment of scrutiny, Ida turns her gaze back to Lanval.
"Sal seems all right," she says. "Most normal animals would be at least a little on edge, here. But yes, most of the time wildlife is infected because the land is, and they live there. I have no idea if it would affect Pokemon the same way. I can hazard a guess, but nothing more concrete."
Ida smiles as the crow flies off. She plucks a feather from the ground, and tucks it into her pocket. "How nice of them," she says.
"Butterfree!" says Catastrophe Sal, confidently, as she waves a tiny hand.
And then Damian abruptly stops. Ida does, too, reaching out with a hand to steady him. She'd thought, maybe, to inquire about the nickname, but no, this is absolutely not the time. "Hellions," Ida says, as the surge of Malevolence washes against her senses. This is not a good place to be attacked--knee-deep in the muck, with very little cover. Ida stomps forward anyway, the mud sucking at her boots with each step.
When she's shoulder-to-shoulder with Damian, she drives a hand forward, palm-out. "Rest," she commands. Brilliant flame ignites around her hand, and washes outwards in a wave. Ida's face pinches in focus as residual feelings of abandonment and helplessness surge against her. But something's... happening. The flame isn't consuming the skeletons, but it is consuming the Malevolence animating them, burning it to pure white smoke, and then nothing.
"Ree?" says Sal, who dangles from Ida's backpack, having stopped mid-emergence.
DG: Ida Everstead-Rey has used her Tool Flare Grenade toward her party's challenge, Don't Give Up. Embolden! Party Combat boosted!
<Pose Tracker> Anne Aomori has posed.
"Yes," Anne says, thinking of the same person Damian does when he says 'someone'. "I'm sure." A pause, as she looks back to Ida. "Pokemon are more powerful than most animals--but more to the point, they don't know Malevolence as a thing to fear. That may be why."
"Hellions," Anne repeats, committing the word and context to memory. She isn't bothered at 'mortals'--but she is concerned about the next part. "So mortals can become Hellions, though Seraphim have a different reaction. And it takes significant Malevolence to do this? Should I be more concerned than I already am?"
Hellions who can keep their 'selves'... Hm. She recognizes this kind of aura, now that she feels it--
But Damian is there. Damian is having trouble--and mentioning something. Those glimmering eyes--
The dead can be taken, too. Anne narrows her eyes, as Lanval buys them some time. Purri starts to react--Ghosts are weak to Dark-types, but Anne is unsure that that would apply here.
"Hmmm. They're solid bone, so I suspect the usual immunities of Ghost-type Pokemon don't apply..." She sounds calm, as if she's facing down a particularly interesting math problem instead of skeletons set on destroying her and her companions.
"Let's find out."
Anne pulls a Pokeball from her belt, but it's not Laqui's. As she extends her hand and throws the Pokemon out, a great flash occurs, and a huge bird emerges into the air.
"FEAAAAAAAR!"
"Arrow," Anne says, as her Fearow perches down on a root. "Feaaar," it says again, and Anne smiles. It's not altogether nice; her glasses glint as she reaches up to adjust them. Anne continues, "Use Hyper Beam."
Arrow--the Fearow--suddenly flaps her great wings again, lifting into the air and soaring up--then banking back, and doing a roll through the air to hover in place a moment. She draws in breath, opening her sharp beak, and energy begins to gather there, brilliant white and yellow. A sense of pressure builds in the air, the marsh stilling as the light washes out all color--
Before a great BEAM of energy erupts outward. It is a torrent of light and heat and force, large enough take in all the Hellions at once.
Anne watches, meanwhile, as Ida's flame consumes the Malevolence. Between them, will it be enough?
DG: Anne Aomori has used her Tool Hyper Beam toward her party's challenge, Don't Give Up. Embolden! Party Combat boosted! Shortsighted! The party will suffer a penalty next round... but not this round!
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
========================<* CHALLENGE - Don't Give Up *>=========================
| Type: Exploration | Dungeon Ability: Combat | Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
Picking your way across the swamp is never easy even under ideal
circumstances and these aren't it. You're forced to go from dry patch to dry
patch, leaping or stepping your way as you're able, ever deeper into the
mire.
Something bubbles from underneath the waters of the swamp. Oh, what now--
Skeletons. They're what's now. Armed with rusted weaponry and animated by
Malevolence, they advance!
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Embolden:_Combat_Up!, Reckless:_Wits_Down!_Brute_Up!, |
| Resilient:_Exhaustion_Down!, Shortsighted:_All_Stats_Down!, and |
| Wound:_Combat_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
=================< Results - Emrys Mire - Quiescent - Round 3 >=================
=========================< CHALLENGE - Don't Give Up >==========================
Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval 10 --(5)--> 15 Best
Holy Bottle Min Combat Effects: Resilient
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anne Aomori 10 --(5)--> 15 Best
Hyper Beam Maj Combat Effects: Shortsighted and
Embolden
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Damian Tamaoka 26 --(5)--> 31 Best
Pokeball Belt Min Combat Effects: Embolden
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ida Everstead-Rey 10 --(5)--> 15 Good
Flare Grenade Min Combat Effects: Embolden
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Leader: Seraph Lanval 40 --(20)--> 60 Pass
Conditions: Reckless(1) and Wound(2)
Effects: Embolden(1), Resilient(1), and Shortsighted(1)
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
DG: The party led by Seraph Lanval has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.
Damian blinks and looks to Lanval as he asks 'Mia?' "I-i-it's a nickname, b-because if you take the middle three letters of m-m-my name..." It's perfectly normal and that's why he has to explain it, of course. But there is definitely a joy there when Anne addresses him with it.
But he's holding up, and Damian smiles. "Th-thanks..."
But Lanval explains more about Hellions, and Damian makes a note of it all in his head as best he can--now's not the time to pull out his phone to take notes. And Ida has more to add, too. "Wh-where does it come f-from...?"
He's grateful to Ida's supportive hand, in the moment. He's doing well but he's still struggling.
But Anne points out the typings don't quite apply here--a fact to which Damian nods. "I kn-know, b-but... P-Purri is s-s-s-supposed to p-protect me, s-so..."
And indeed Purri's quick action and nimble footing delayu the skeletons a few brief precious moments, long enough for Lanval to erect a holy barrier to keep them at bay from the rest of the party. When Ida strides forth with her cleansing flame, neither Damian or Purri know what to expect, and Purri lets out a panicked "Purr!?!?" as bright but not-damaging flames begin to burn away the Malevolence.
When Purri hears 'Hyper Beam' though, she does know what to expect. She retreats to Damian's shoulder to avoid the incoming attack. Damian and Purri watch it together as if it were a completely normal and reasonable thing for a giant bird to do unleashing a huge blast of energy.
With the malevolence gone, and the bones thoroughly scoured, the bones--or what's left of them--collapse back into a heap into the muck, inert.
Damian's eyes glow for a moment more, and even intensify momentarily as he watches those bones... "Th-they m-moved, b-but... th-th-there w-wasn't anyone p-present..." he says quietly. Then the glow abruptly stops and Damian holds his head. He looks unsteady, and closes his eyes as Purri nuzzles at his cheek.
DG: Ida Everstead-Rey has drawn a new Challenge.
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
======================<* CHALLENGE - Bridge of Theseus *>=======================
| Type: Exploration | Dungeon Ability: Agility | Challenge Rating: 1 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
A long, long time ago, when this marsh was even less terrible than it is
now, someone built a bridge here. It served to connect two patches of land
that were separated by a shallow stream. Over time, though, the landscape
changed: the shallow stream was eventually overtaken by the spreading
Malevolence of the mire and what had been a cute little bridge over a stream
became ever more critical to crossing the swamp.
You know, without getting your shoes wet.
Over time, people have replaced sections of the bridge as time required (is
it... even the same bridge anymore?). But the quality has been varied: the
bridge you approach now looks a little unstable. You'll need to tread
carefully to avoid stepping on (or through) a weak section.
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Embolden:_Combat_Up!, Hesitate:_Agility_Down!_Wits_Up!, |
| Resilient:_Exhaustion_Down!, Shortsighted:_All_Stats_Down!, and |
| Wound:_Combat_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.
This is the first time Ida's seen any of Anne's Pokemon in a fight. Her gaze darts up to Arrow as she gets into position, but she can't afford to give it her full attention--she has her hands full with Purification. The flame sweeps over the skeletons' remains, burning up every last bit of Malevolence, even as the bones themselves crack and splinter from Arrow's Hyper Beam.
Sal lets out another of those impressed little trills. She tugs on Ida's shirt, then puts her palm out, mimicking what Ida just did.
Ida shakes her head. "No, Sal, I'm afraid I can't teach you that."
"Butterfree," says Sal, her antennae drooping a little. (She waves to Arrow, anyway. That was AWESOME.)
There is a far more pressing problem. "Malevolence can do that," Ida says, reaching out to grip Damian's shoulder--and pausing. "Is it all right if I touch your shoulder?" She did it earlier, but he seems to be having a real rough time of it, and she knows sometimes she doesn't like to be touched when that's happening to her. To answer his question, though... "Like Lanval said, it can animate things like rocks and plants, corpses, even manufactured objects."
As to where it comes from...? "We're still working to unravel its origins," Ida admits, "but it arises from the conflict and tension inherent in human hearts. Everyone feels conflicted about something, at some point."
The trek continues. The mud is thick and sticky, but livelier than it was last. There's pools of algae here and there, fresh growth on old, gnarled trees. A dragonfly flits past, skimming low over the water. (Sal watches it with interest.) And then: a bridge. Why a bridge? Because an old, old riverbed cuts right through the swamp, resulting in a deep, murky gouge in the land. Definitely not safe to wade through. The bridge is not safe, either.
Ida frowns. She could ask Lanval--who would be, at worst, mildly inconvenienced by a fall--to go first, but... "Here," she says. She presses her heels together, and despite the mud coating her boots, the Symbology in them works just fine. A bright, fresh wind whips up across the bridge. Ida scrapes gunk off her soles, takes a deep breath, and leaps for it, trying to cross as quickly and carefully as she can.
DG: Ida Everstead-Rey has used her Tool Zephyr Boots toward her party's challenge, Bridge of Theseus. Quicken! Party Agility boosted!
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.
Lanval watches with one open eye - going wide, uncharacteristically - when he watches that Hyper Beam go off. That is some serious firepower from the Fearow! He's so impressed that he's glad Ida's able to take over and answer the question - but he settles down when the matter is under control. The Hellions are purified, and while the remains might need to be seen to eventually... there's no telling who they were, in times of antiquity.
They come across a patchy bridge. Efforts were made to maintain it, with... mixed results. Mixed-and-matched, more like, some of the work is really good, some of it isn't, but then it's propped back up by better-skilled hands and then once again threatening to be undone by less-capable carpenters, and... well.
He just takes a seat, as Ida starts to work her Zephyr Boots' Symbological power.
"'m gonna wait here," he says, as he pulls out a kiseru-style smoking pipe. (Fun fact - in Energy Nede, its graphic is changed into a proper bubble wand, for... some reason. But they're not there right now, so Anne and Damian will have to make due with a world where smoking exists.)
From there, he blows bubbles - lots of bubbles - setting them about the sides of the bridge in case anyone falls. He'll come drifting by, eventually.
DG: Seraph Lanval has used his Tool Bubble Pipe toward his party's challenge, Bridge of Theseus. Rally!
<Pose Tracker> Anne Aomori has posed.
Where does it come from? Anne listens to the answer--but she doesn't hear a definitive one. Instead, "I see... But is it unique to humans?" she wonders. "That's what I need to determine. Because Nedians feel just as much tension and conflict, I'm sure. ...When we're allowed to. When we have the chance."
Purri does protect Damian. There is that. She walks to Damian, then, and says, "It's all right." Ida's already moving to touch hhis shoulder, so she just uses her words. As for Hyper Beam...
"Heh. So it did work. The rules don't apply the same way on Lunar."
"You're really fine just waiting here?" she wonders of the bridge, looking it over after Lanval pulls out his... pipe. Which is a smoking pipe. "Huh."
"Return, Arrow," she says, and pulls another Pokeball. "Ichi. You're up."
A giant rodent appears! Big and orange-yellow with black stripes, the Raichu has a tail ending in what looks like a stylized lightning bolt, and cute ears. "Rai!" he says proudly, and looks around. "Chuuu..." He doesn't like the muck much.
"Don't worry. We're going over it."
"Join in if you want, Lanval." She winks, and then moves to step behind the Raichu. "Ichi... Use Surf."
"Chuuuu!" Raichu bends at his knees and focuses--and pure, fresh, clean water starts to sweep over the muck. He's suddenly on a surfboard, and so is Anne on the same one. "Chuuuu!"
Anne surfs over the mire. It's fine.
DG: Anne Aomori has used her Tool Surf toward her party's challenge, Bridge of Theseus. Stalwart! Party shielded from some Exhaustion this round!
<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.
Damian looks up to Ida, as she places a hand on his shoulder again and nods. "I-i-it's okay..." Luckily Purri's on his other shoulder, though she quickly slips down into his arms for him to hug. (That's how you know he's not doing so hot.) But Ida reaffirms that Malevolence can animate manufactured objects. "R-r-right, b-but..." He's struggling, not with the act of speaking, for once, but with how to actually explain.
"Th-th-they used to be people... b-but th-their spirits a-aren't there, a-a-anymore." It's possible he can only interact with Nedian ghosts, but given the way that he can see Lanval, he doubts that's the case. "B-b-but i-it felt l-l-like... s-something..."
He nods up to Anne. Even without a physical touch, her words are comforting.
Everyone feels conflicted about something, sometime... Damian can't bring himself to say anything to that.
They get to a bridge. Anne goes surfing, but Damian doesn't have any water pokemon yet. So instead, he looks to the bridge. HE recognizes Ida's magic, now. "P-Purri, c-can you find me a safe path?"
"Purr!" Purri gives him a cheekrub and then jumps down. She's light and agile, and with the assistance of Ida's magic she moves across the bridge, testing spots. Damian follows behind here she indicates that it's safe. The extra training with Anne is helping with his coordination, too.
DG: Damian Tamaoka has used his Tool Purri toward his party's challenge, Bridge of Theseus. Fanfare!
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
======================<* CHALLENGE - Bridge of Theseus *>=======================
| Type: Exploration | Dungeon Ability: Agility | Challenge Rating: 1 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
A long, long time ago, when this marsh was even less terrible than it is
now, someone built a bridge here. It served to connect two patches of land
that were separated by a shallow stream. Over time, though, the landscape
changed: the shallow stream was eventually overtaken by the spreading
Malevolence of the mire and what had been a cute little bridge over a stream
became ever more critical to crossing the swamp.
You know, without getting your shoes wet.
Over time, people have replaced sections of the bridge as time required (is
it... even the same bridge anymore?). But the quality has been varied: the
bridge you approach now looks a little unstable. You'll need to tread
carefully to avoid stepping on (or through) a weak section.
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Hesitate:_Agility_Down!_Wits_Up!, Quicken:_Agility_Up!, and |
| Wound:_Combat_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
=================< Results - Emrys Mire - Quiescent - Round 4 >=================
=======================< CHALLENGE - Bridge of Theseus >========================
Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval 15 --(0)--> 15 Best
Bubble Pipe Maj Agility Effects: Rally
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anne Aomori 15 --(0)--> 15 Best
Surf Min Agility Effects: Stalwart
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Damian Tamaoka 31 --(0)--> 31 Best
Purri Min Agility Effects: Efficient and
Fanfare
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ida Everstead-Rey 15 --(0)--> 15 Best
Zephyr Boots Min Agility Effects: Quicken
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Leader: Seraph Lanval 60 --(20)--> 80 Pass
Conditions: Hesitate(2) and Wound(1)
Effects: Quicken(1)
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
DG: The party led by Seraph Lanval has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw. DG: Seraph Lanval has drawn a new Challenge.
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
======================<* CHALLENGE - Encounter Evasion *>=======================
| Type: Final | Dungeon Ability: Agility | Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
There is a noise. Some high, horn-like cry that sounds all too organic to
have been, say, the result of a lost hunter or the like. You hear a loud
splash not all that far away. It's followed by another.
And then the sounds start to get closer and closer together.
And then you see it. Yep, that's a Hellion, and a nasty one at that.
Maybe you could take it. Maybe you couldn't. But a better, alternative
option to taking that /thing/ on has presented itself to you, courtesy of
the ruins of some fortifications just over there.
It's time to run, ideally into the remnants into those ruins! That thing is
far too large to fit through the entry arch without risking bringing that
part of the stonework down upon it, which would really rain on its
metaphorical parade.
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Hesitate:_Agility_Down!_Wits_Up!, Quicken:_Agility_Up!, and |
| Slow:_Agility_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.
Realization gleams in Ida's eyes. "Oh," she says, and her face falls. "They can't hurt you now." It feels hollow--like Damian was afraid of more than just being hurt--but she's not sure what else to say. She glances back at Anne, who looks... a little alarmingly intense, but if Ida were to hazard a guess, she just got a data point or two off those Hellions.
The bridge, at least, is easily dealt with. Lanval's bubbles provide a little extra stability, keeping the rickety portions in one piece as Ida and Damian cross. Purri is light and agile enough that it's a non-issue for her, and Damian can follow her path easily. A few wooden planks creak ominously, but nothing gives way. Ida, who is already on the other side, stands ready to catch him if he needs it.
Anne and Ichi surf on past, bypassing the bridge altogether--and looking remarkably stylish while doing it. "Butterfree," says Sal, a little envy in her voice. Are all of Anne's Pokemon this cool??
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.
"Mmm," Lanval thinks as he floats by on another bubble from a ways behind. "What I learned... ish that there'sh a lotta different kindsh of 'living dead.' Heck, fer the longesht time, I never thought it'd be posshible ta have an undead born from shomethin' other than Malevolence."
He stops and turns his head as Anne and her friend Ichi surf on by, then realizes maybe he shouldn't disrupt what's going on there.
"...'m glad yer thinkin' of 'em," he says to Damian, "it shaysh a lot 'bout ya."
...
They manage to get to the other side, and it's mostly uneventful until there's a loud noise. It's a loud, horn-like one... but it's organic, rather than from an instrument.
"Ida," Lanval speaks up, but by then Ida almost definitely knows as soon as he does, as their senses are keen to this.
The canopies of the trees above obscure its form, but it's a big one that lumbers towards them, glowing eyes bearing down as acrid clouds of Malevolence rise where saliva hits the ground. The shade of that part of the mire obscures finer details, but to put a fine point - it's huge, and so's the concentration of Malevolence it bears within it.
"Anne! Damian!" Lanval calls, as he looks off in another direction. "There'sh shelter thataway, but yer gonna hafta be quick!"
Ida and Lanval have been in these parts a few times, and the memory lines up - there are some structures here that could serve as cover and a hiding place from something like this, and they're going to have to book it because it's making that chilling horn-like cry again as it spies would-be victims.
"'d rather take it on when we got more people accushtomed ta Malevolence," he says to Ida before makes a wet whistling motion between his lips, and racing across the murk...
...is arguably something just as unsettling, a brightly-colored, flat-bodied thing that is hollow and filled with nothing but air, with a horrid painted-on smiling face roughly the shape of a horse's head. It follows on a trail of thin water that lets it slide forward at a rather silly speed, which Lanval helps himself onto as it rockets forward towards the ruins that might serve as shelter.
"Hop on if ya gotta," he offers to the rest.
DG: Seraph Lanval has risked with his Tool Buoyant Steed toward his party's challenge, Encounter Evasion. Cleanse! All negative effects will be cleared at the end of the round!
<Pose Tracker> Anne Aomori has posed.
Anne has known her oldest Pokemon for longer than Damian has been alive; it only makes sense that they'd be a well-oiled team at this point. She is pretty proud of them, though.
Anne can be intense, too. She is--until she looks at Damian, and then she looks gentle. "I understand," she asys. "There is something there, I think. But not the same as what they originally were."
As Lanval mentions what he learned, though, Anne considers that too. "That's... true," she says.
But on the other side, when there is a noise, Anne does not sense the same thing that Ida and Lanval do immediately. She sees, though. SHe ses the shape; Lanval calls to them, and Anne springs into action. He mentions what needs doing, and she does it. She moves forward--
And picks up Damian bodily, hopping forward and onto Raichu's surfboard as it manifests again without her having to instruct him. The water starts to intensify, continue--
...She pauses, as she looks at Lanval's steed. "..."
She returns to surfing forward.
DG: Anne Aomori has used her Tool Surf toward her party's challenge, Encounter Evasion. Stalwart! Party shielded from some Exhaustion this round!
<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.
They can't hurt him now. Damian nods. "I-I know... I c-can t-tell, i-it's..." He smiles briefly to Lanval as he compliments him for thinking of the dead.
"... i-it's a-a-all I can th-think about, s-sometimes..."
Damian does take the helping hand from Ida, though, getting off of the bridge. And then Purri is right back in his arms.
He hugs her tight, burying his face in her fur for a moment to center himself. His voice is a little tired sounding as he starts to explain. "I-I h-have... a-a-an ability, c-called S-S-Spiritsight. I-it lets me s-see a-and talk, w-with the departed. A-and w-with g-ghost type pokemon." And Seraphim too, apparently.
"I d-d-don't th-think... i-it l-likes M-M-MMalevolence v-very m-much...." It meaning his Spiritsight.
And that's born out a moment later when something touches down, and Damian freezes up. he's instinctively turning towards it, shrinking back, and one hand goes to his head as he whimpers. He should be moving, but that overwhelming sensation...
Anne might have an idea, now, what effect this is having on him, from their conversation with Shige the other day.
"Purr! Purr!" Purri is headbutting Damian, trying every trick she can think of to get him to move, but it's Anne that comes with a solution. Purri jumps down to give Anne a chance to pick Damian up, and then hops back up into his arms, nosing at his cheek and doing her best to reassure hima nd keep him calm so Anne doesn't drop him.
DG: Damian Tamaoka has used his Tool Purri toward his party's challenge, Encounter Evasion. Fanfare!
<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.
'... i-it's a-a-all I can th-think about, s-sometimes...'
Ida's eyes narrow. Sal lets out a soft trill, antennae drooping. Thankfully, Purri is on the job, as she always is. "Good girl, Purri," Ida murmurs, offering a little encouragement as Damian gathers his wits. Spiritsight. Something psychic? Or Resonance? Close enough to Resonance that it works just fine in Lunar's spiritual ecosystem. And it's clearly deeply distressing. Ida's brow knits as she thinks back to the friendly fight with Xantia that got very unfriendly thanks to Shoo. Are all Ghost-types like that?
The Domain of something massive washes over Ida like a fetid wave. She shudders, and meets Lanval's eyes as he speaks up. She glances back--
"Butterfree," says Sal. Golly, that's a big one.
"Damian," says Ida, "run."
Damian freezes.
"Run!" Ida repeats, throwing herself bodily between Damian and the charging Hellion. She'd be a distraction, at best, but she has to get him out of here--!
Anne intervenes. Ida shoots her a thankful, silent look, and leaps forwards, onto Lanval's raft. It's objectively hideous. Ida hates the feeling of its synthetic material on her skin. Both of these facts are irrelevant right now. "FASTER!" Ida shouts, and she presses muddy boot heels together, summoning a fierce tailwind to propel the pool toy faster.
DG: Ida Everstead-Rey has used her Tool Zephyr Boots toward her party's challenge, Encounter Evasion. Quicken! Party Agility boosted!
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
======================<* CHALLENGE - Encounter Evasion *>=======================
| Type: Final | Dungeon Ability: Agility | Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
There is a noise. Some high, horn-like cry that sounds all too organic to
have been, say, the result of a lost hunter or the like. You hear a loud
splash not all that far away. It's followed by another.
And then the sounds start to get closer and closer together.
And then you see it. Yep, that's a Hellion, and a nasty one at that.
Maybe you could take it. Maybe you couldn't. But a better, alternative
option to taking that /thing/ on has presented itself to you, courtesy of
the ruins of some fortifications just over there.
It's time to run, ideally into the remnants into those ruins! That thing is
far too large to fit through the entry arch without risking bringing that
part of the stonework down upon it, which would really rain on its
metaphorical parade.
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Cleanse:_All_Effects_Removed!, Hesitate:_Agility_Down!_Wits_Up!, |
| Quicken:_Agility_Up!, and Slow:_Agility_Down! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
=================< Results - Emrys Mire - Quiescent - Round 5 >=================
=======================< CHALLENGE - Encounter Evasion >========================
Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval 15 --(0)--> 15 Best
Buoyant Steed Maj Agility Effects: Cleanse,
Inefficient, and Risky
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anne Aomori 15 --(0)--> 15 Best
Surf Min Agility Effects: Stalwart
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Damian Tamaoka 31 --(0)--> 31 Best
Purri Min Agility Effects: Efficient and
Fanfare
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ida Everstead-Rey 15 --(0)--> 15 Best
Zephyr Boots Min Agility Effects: Quicken
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Leader: Seraph Lanval 80 --(35)--> 115 Pass
Conditions: Hesitate(2) and Slow(2)
Effects: Cleanse and Quicken(1)
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
DG: You have overcome the dungeon's trials! This run is a success! DG: The party led by Seraph Lanval has successfully explored Emrys Mire - Quiescent!
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Quiescent *>==========================
======================<* CHALLENGE - Wizardly Spellbook *>======================
| Type: Discovery | Dungeon Ability: Conclusion | Challenge Rating: 1 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information >----------------------------
However you end up doing it, you breach the crumbling fort ruins, your foe
having been dealt with.
There isn't much left amidst these ancient stone walls: time and the
elements (and Malevolence) have seen fit to render most of what had been
inside the fort to the dust from which it came. There are a few remnants
from life before the area became infested with Malevolence, largely pottery
and the like, but only an archaeologist or historian would find much about
those interesting.
Until you come across the book, that is. The book has been warded against
the depredations of time thanks to the enchantments placed upon it: the
person who owned it had been a potent magus, indeed. Inside its pages are
included a number of spells utilizing the power of Althena's Blessing, some
of which have not been heard of since the time of the owner.
And perhaps you know it: the story of the mire. Once, it is said, a great
wizard went mad and attacked his own people -- the Wyllt, they called him.
And perhaps you also know the truth: that his friend, a Seraph, had become
tainted by Malevolence and transformed into a Fell Dragon. Unable to slay
her, he had sealed her here and driven his people away to protect them,
hoping for the day when someone would come to finish what he had started.
In time, his wish had come true: the dragon had been slain.
Perhaps you were even one of those who had realized his hope, at long last.
============================= Dungeon Conditions: =============================
| Cleanse:_All_Effects_Removed!, Hesitate:_Agility_Down!_Wits_Up!, |
| Quicken:_Agility_Up!, Slow:_Agility_Down!, and Treasure:_Exploration_Up! |
= Digger 2.0 ===================================================================
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.
They all flee for it. The ground shakes, pounding, for every limbfall from the enormous Hellion they escape from, and one by one they thread that needle and get themselves into the crumbling fortifications that are just large enough, just sturdy enough, the Hellion cannot pursue without bringing themselves to harm.
(Oftentimes, that doesn't dissuade a determined Hellion, given the self-destructive nature of Malevolence and the contradictions that empower it, but... something about this works.)
They have a moment to rest up. This part of the Mire isn't too bad on the Malevolence ambient, but the elements and the spiritual poison wreaked havoc on this place. Some intact pottery here and there, some ruined tapestries and the like. Lots of dust and mold. (achoo!)
...
"Heyyy," Lanval says, as he teeters over to look into a room. "Mmm. A book. Shtill got an enchantment on it, buuuut..."
He ambles closer, leans at it, and pokes at it with a finger a few times. "Mmm. It ain't lockin' it, it'sh jusht... protectin' it from the weather, 'm guesshin'." Indeed, the book has been warded against time and the elements, and it's a clear and easy enough read.
This belonged to a truly powerful magus of their time, and for Althena's Blessing spellcasters (there's one here, technically), there's some very neat spells here! (Some he must have collaborated upon, because it does jump between 'Black' and 'White' aspects - a single individual of Althena's Blessing can only have one or the other.)
...But there are accounts, storied, involving an afflicted Seraph. A dear friend of theirs, tainted by Malevolence.
He details here how he sealed the Fell Dragon - using a number of swords as part of the seal - and made sure to drive his people away so they wouldn't be hurt. They would call him 'the Wyllt,' a mad wizard.
There are scraps written in hopes that someone can come finish what he started, a wish that only came true very, very recently.
"...Lemme know when yer done readin'," Lanval says to the others, "'ll make shure the enchantment shtaysh up. ...'sh pretty old."
<Pose Tracker> Anne Aomori has posed.
Anne sets Damian back down, once they're through. She doesn't say anything about having just protected him, in the moment; she just... did it, and that's that.
"Chuuu," Raichu says though, proud of himself. "Yes," Anne agrees. "You did well. ...Come on back for now."
She recalls Ichi the Raichu, and then looks around too. When Lanval mentions something...
Anne reads the book. She looks over the spells with some interest--they aren't Symbology, but they're still fascinating examples of spellwork. But then she reaches the accounts, the stories...
"...So his hope came true in the end," Anne comments. "Even though he had to seem the villain to enact it."
"...A tragedy," she says. "But one that seems to have ended."
"I'm glad you were able to help them."
<Pose Tracker> Damian Tamaoka has posed.
Purri purrs happily at the praise. She is on the job--quite a lot, actually. Taking care of Damian is kind of a full time job, but... Damian takes very good care of her, in return.
But it's always nice to hear it. "Purr, purrloin!"
Nedians wold refer to it as a type of psychic ability. And there are others Ida may have met that have other types of psychic abilities. (Joy is one, whether she is aware of it or not.) But whatever it is, it does indeed seem to work on Lunar's spiritual landscape, at least to some degree.
Not all of them... but a lot of them are, yes. Now's probably not the time to ask Damian about that.
But there is a moment where he freezes up, and when Anne sets him down--or at least, when they get far enough away from that Hellion, he seems to stir again. He hugs Purri tight, whispering a very quiet, "S-s-s-" Slow, deep, breath. "Sorry."
He looks up to Anne, just a bit of a blush on his cheeks at having to be saved. Especially after she'd working with him so much. "Th-th-thanks..." comes another quiet word.
He's pretty quiet after that, giving himself a break from talking for a bit as he calms down... but he does look at the book, with interest, handling it with all due care, like he's handled an old book or two before.
There is a look to Anne as she mentions playing the villain to protect people.
He takes a few pictures of the stories and accounts with his smartphone, so he can keep a record.
<Pose Tracker> Ida Everstead-Rey has posed.
The raft comes to a halt. Ida clambers out, and rushes over to Anne and Damian. Wide eyes flick back and forth as she checks them over, but the fear in them slowly fades. Neither is visibly injured--Damian is shaken, and will need time and attention, but it could've been so much worse. "Just breathe," Ida says. "We all made it."
"Butterfree," says Sal, leaning out of Ida's pack to add her own encouragement. That thing was big and scary, even to her. Being scared is okay!
"...Yes," Ida says, as Anne finishes reading. "A horrible choice to have to make. But... most people here can't sense Malevolence. They wouldn't even know they were in danger until their friends and family turned. Even then, they'd just see them acting like feral beasts, if they lost their self-awareness to the infection. That's why Purification is so important. I'm one of the few people who can see Malevolence and cleanse it."
But Ida's from Filgaia. How is she able to do that?